Having high cholesterol is never a good thing. Unfortunately, most drugs designed to reduce it can end up doing more harm than good. Here are some natural alternatives that may help protect your heart...

1.EFA’s.Essential fatty-acids like omega 3s and omega 6s have quite the track record for helping your overall health. The best way to get them is to eat sources of wild-caught fish like salmon and halibut. That said, it might be easier for you to just take a fish oil supplement. One study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine found that as little as 3 grams of fish oil per day can reduce LDL (“bad”) cholesterol by up to 21%!

2.Plant Sterols.These are naturally-occurring compounds in vegetables and legumes. A study in the Journal of Nutrition found that they canblock cholesterol absorption in the intestines by more than 10%.

3.MOVE. Exercise improves HDL (“good”) cholesterol. And, it will also help reduce total cholesterol. But interestingly enough, a study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology suggests that aerobic exercise can “transform” LDL (“bad”) cholesterolinto a more harmless form.

4.Red Yeast Rice. You can usually find this at any natural health food store. The Mayo Clinic Proceedings found it to be just as effective as popular statin drugs. Make sure to take a COQ10 supplement with it, to prevent low COQ10 levels